Sunrise
by morph
Summary: Everything is starting fresh like a new dawn. Set during 'The Eleventh Hour' and is a part of my TARDIS 100 series. Written in the TARDIS' POV. Long-ish one-shot.


AN/ I, like many others I know, was very happy with 'The Eleventh Hour.' It has prompted me to write quite a bit as the new Doctor and the new TARDIS re-acquaint themselves in my mind. Contains spoilers for 'The Eleventh Hour.' Part of my TARDIS 100 series. TARDIS POV. I don't own Doctor Who. If I did, I'd have enough money to move out by now.

Dedicated to Nick.

* * *

There was burning fire, smoke and pain. Everything was broken, everything was mixed up. The atmosphere was dangerous. White smoke wafted from my shattered windows. My outsides would have been warm to the touch. This wasn't going to be a simple fix; this was going to require major work.

Once the Doctor got me out of the danger zone so that my life was no longer at risk, I isolated my mind. Not even the threat of the planet blowing up would make me open my doors. Besides, I had every confidence that my Doctor, with his new face and body, would be able to save the day.

I had my own work to do.

When I was done, I gave him a call. A psychic link through his key and in his mind. _I am ready._

He ran right to me. It's good to know he will still come when I call him.

His eyes took in my new exterior. These changes were minor – the windows and a St. John's Ambulance badge were the biggest differences. He was excited, I could feel it. Like his past regeneration, he was brimming with energy. He couldn't wait to see the new me. I was eager too to see the new him. I hadn't gotten a good look before.

"Okay, what have you got for me this time?"

I noticed something about him now. It was that energy. The Doctor has had a maniac quality to him before. He had it last time right after he regenerated. That energy had lasted for a long time, but towards the end of his tenth life, is had waned as he grew tired, lonely and heartsick. The bounce was back in his step now. A new life. It was good to see.

He unlocked my doors and looked in. His face was bathed in a warm glow – like the sun. I could sense him better now. He was amazed. That was another new thing – he doesn't have the shock of seeing my interior for the first time because he's always used to it. Now he took a moment to absorb it all.

"Look at you." His face split into a grin. "Oh, you sexy thing. _Look_ at you!"

I caressed his mind. _"Look at _you_, my Doctor... you look very good yourself. Your new skin suits you."_

He climbed in and shut my doors. My controls were the same, but different.

"I remember this... this is like how you looked before..." the Doctor said, running a hand over my switches. "...kind of...ooh, glass and bronze..." he smiled at my new floor and my new walls, craning his neck to try to see from every angle. He spoke fast. It seemed to be natural for him. "Of course, it's not really glass and bronze, but still... I like it."

"_Do you really?"_

He smiled up at my restored Time Rotor and the design inside, like a drop of water frozen in mid-splash into a shallow pool. "Really, I do... how about me?" He spun in place and adjusted his bow-tie.

"_Yes, my Doctor."_

"Good! Time for a test drive!" Never still for a second, he sprung into action, sending us off and away. "Just a quick hop to the moon, make sure you're all running smoothly, work out any little bugs."

I flew brilliantly – as brilliantly as I ever do when he's trying to re-learn my controls. We landed on the moon and watched the sunrise over the planet Earth below.

"_There was an Atraxi signal. You sorted it out?"_

"Yep. A prisoner of theirs had escaped, but it's all taken care of. They got off with a warning. They won't be coming back to threaten to incinerate Earth again. They know how that it's protected."

Good to know he was still dangerous, but could channel it again wisely. It was also good to know that he was still giving out second chances.

"Do the words 'silence will fall' mean anything to you?" He asked.

"_They do not, though I suspect this may be another prophecy."_

"Hmm... maybe. There was a mix-up again, you know. I don't blame you, honestly, because you were about to explode and all, but it's really about time you learned the difference between five minutes and twelve years."

"_I'm old. These things happen. You knew that when we first got together, my Doctor."_

"Yeah, I know, it's okay. It's just... there's a girl."

That excited me. _"A new companion?"_

"I think so. Amelia, or Amy Pond."

"_What's she like?"_

"Scottish. Red hair, like the sunrise. I met her as a little girl, and thanks to you, she grew into a young woman in the space of five minutes. Imagine my surprise."

Red hair. My memory banks stirred with thoughts of Donna. _"Fiery temper?"_

The Doctor smiled, amused. "Oh yes, but it's a quieter, yet more violent kind of anger. She's good with a cricket bat, let's say. She's stubborn too. Brave, all that. I'm not wearing long ties again, around her, that's for sure." His long fingers tugged at his bowtie again.

"_How do you know she'll come?"_

"She faced a multiform with giant teeth, afraid but strong in mind and body. She can think on her feet. She waited for me for a dozen years without giving up. Only the best do that. Besides, I promised her... and I can't abandon her without at least asking. I don't want to be a disappointment."

This was obviously a sore point. First impressions are important. I worried though... so long without a proper companion, he might just leap onto the first clever person he came across regardless of how suitable they are for him or for the life we lead. The Doctor picked up on my feelings. "Of course you'll have to approve of her too."

"_We shall see."_

He turned me around to head back to Earth. "Oh, two other things, as well, Old Girl. One; I need a new sonic screwdriver. The old one's fried. And... I want a _really_ cool new one this time. No sense changing everything else and keeping that old thing the same."

I agreed.

"And two; there's something I've been kind of thinking of, and since it's going to happen in the future anyways and since the future is now... would you be able to open your doors again when I snap my fingers?"

"_You just want to show off, don't you?"_

"Yeah, kind of."

"_Of course."_

"Alright, thanks." He smiled again. "Oh, and we'll have to stock up on fish fingers and custard."

"_...Why?"_

"Snacks!" The Doctor winked and hopped out my doors. I'd arrived at in Amy's back garden again at night. I had made the Doctor late again as well, but if Miss Amy Pond could wait for him for twelve years, then waiting another two would be nothing. I extended my mind out so I could hear them.

"Sorry about running off earlier!" the Doctor called out. "Brand new TARDIS. Bit exciting! Just had a quick hop to the moon and back to run her in. She's ready for big stuff now." He patted my frame.

I sensed Amy's approach. Her feelings were mixed. She was excited and happy, but angry too. "It's you. You came back."

"'Course I came back. I always come back. Something wrong with that?"

"You kept the clothes."

He glanced down at himself. "Well, I just saved the world, the whole _planet_ for about a minute's time, no charge. So shoot me. Yeah, I kept the clothes."

"Including the _bow tie_."

"It's cool. Bow ties are cool." Again, he tugged at it. To me, it seemed to be one of his new favourite things.

"Are you from another planet?" Amy didn't ask it seriously, but he answered it seriously.

"Yeah."

"'Kay..."

The Doctor jumped right to the chase. "So, what do you think?"

"What?"

"Other planets, want to check some out?"

She stared at him. I could feel her frustration as her mind tried again to wrap itself around what he was saying. "What does that mean?"

"It means, well... it means... come with me." The Doctor shuffled his feet. It couldn't have been from the cold of the night. It was nervousness.

"Where?" she demanded.

"_Where_-ever you like."

Amy looked up at me. "All that stuff that happened, the hospital, the spaceships, Prisoner Zero..."

"Oh, don't worry, that's just the beginning. There's loads more."

If Amy Pond liked that excitement, then she should definitely come along.

"Yeah, but those things... all those amazing things, all that stuff..." They stared at each other. She could tell he wasn't understanding. This made me like her more. The Doctor needs someone to keep him in line sometimes. She stepped towards him and raised her voice. "That was two years ago!"

The Doctor chuckled, but knew he was in trouble. "Ooo-oh... oops."

"Yeah."

"So that's –"

"Fourteen years!"

"Fourteen years since fish custard."

Ah. That explains _that_ then.

"Amy Pond, the girl who waited, you've waited long enough," the Doctor continued.

Amy relaxed a little. She'd always been infatuated with the Doctor and the amazing things he had talked about. This chance to finally see more of them was too good to be true in her mind, and she didn't want to miss it again, not really. She looked at me again. "When I was a kid, you said there was a swimming pool, and a library, and you said the swimming pool was _in_ the library."

That had not been fun to clean out. I wasn't going to let _that_ happen again quickly.

"Yeah, not sure where it's go to now. It'll turn up. So, coming?" It didn't sound like much of a request any more. He wanted an answer.

But Amy wasn't sure. "No."

The Doctor wasn't accepting that. He could see it in her eyes. "You wanted to come fourteen years ago."

"I grew up."

He smiled. "Don't worry, I'll soon fix that." She was grown in body, maybe, but having a child-like wonder will get you far in life. One must never lose that. He snapped his fingers. I obediently opened one of my doors. I could see now how much he really wanted Amy to come with him. She was winning me over.

Red-golden dawn-like light spilled onto Amy's face. Her eyes and mind were wide, though she was speechless with shock. She looked back at the Doctor, and he looked at her... and then he knew that he was one step closer to winning her over. She stepped inside and he followed, closing the door. The Doctor quickly moved up to the next level with the glass floor around my control panels. He grinned, pleased with how everything was going.

I peeked a little into Amy's mind, and saw that though the Doctor had indeed disappointed her, she always hoped and always waited. Now she could tell that everything he had said, all those wonderful fantasies could possibly be true. She had her chance now to go on all those adventures.

But first, she had to get over the hurdle of adjusting to the wonder that is me.

"Well?" The Doctor asked. "Anything you want to say, any passing remarks? I've heard them all."

We were both expecting her to say the same thing, but instead she came out with "I'm in my nightie."

Well, that's new.

"Oh, don't worry," the Doctor said, "plenty of clothes in the wardrobe, _and_ possibly a swimming pool. So, all of time and space and everything that ever happened or ever will... where do you want to start?"

Amy's mind boggled, but just for a moment. She walked to up the Doctor. "You are so sure that I'm coming."

"Yeah, I am."

"Why?"

They started to move around my controls, talking around my Time Rotor. They touched a bit of my panel here and there, the Doctor still taking in my features. So much was new, so much inspired from my past. I listened happily to their banter.

"You're the Scottish girl in an English village, and I know how that feels."

"Oh, do you?"

"All these years here most of your life and you've still got that accent. Yeah, you're coming!" The Doctor dinged my bell. He was going to have a lot of fun with me, I could tell. I could have fun with him too.

Something bubbled up in Amy's mind. There was an image of a white dress hanging in her bedroom. That was very, very important, but... she couldn't let the Doctor disappear again without her. "Can you get me back tomorrow morning?"

"It's a time machine. I could get you back for five minutes ago. Why? What's tomorrow?"

"Nothing, nothing... just a lot of stuff."

The Doctor studied her, but didn't press it, and I wasn't going to tell him. Amy should. It's always interesting the secrets the Doctor and the companions keep from each other.

"Alright then, back in time for stuff," The Doctor said.

I sent the Doctor a signal and his fresh sonic screwdriver was pushed up through a slot. It reflected my recent design change, and had a green tip instead of blue. "Oh, a new one!" He took it and gave it a test buzz. "Lovely." He tossed it, caught it, and pocketed it. "Thanks, dear," he whispered to me.

"_I hope I'm the first one you use it on."_ He knew how much I liked my sonic screwdriver massages. More things to look forward to. My heart sang as he typed in various commands and settings. After the dark times we faced, things were looking so much more hopeful now.

Amy twitched one of my switches and jumped at the sound it made. She pretended to be fascinated at my ceiling, and quickly became genuinely fascinated in it. She had a cheeky side to her too. Yes, I do believe I could tolerate her joining my Doctor for his adventures.

Another thought raced through Amy's mind, and she became worried. Maybe there was some other motive here. She whipped around. "Why me?" she asked.

"Why not?"

"No, seriously, you are asking me to run away with you in the middle of the night. It's a fair question. Why me?"

The Doctor's attention was split between her and my controls. "I don't know, for fun. Do I have to have a reason?"

"People always have a reason."

"Do I look like people?"

He'd asked her that before.

"Yes," she snapped.

"Been knocking around on my own for a while," he explained vaguely, "my choice, but I started talking to myself all the time, gave me an ear ache."

It was true. When we were alone, he had continued to talk and ramble, explaining things as he always did when there was a companion around, but that time, there wasn't. It only made me sad for him.

"You're lonely. That's it, just that?"

"Just that. Promise," the Doctor assured her.

I wondered about the suspicion, but then I saw his memory of her handcuffing him, and her telling him what her job was...

Yes, monsters and aliens aside, things were never going to be dull.

"Okay." Amy appeared to be satisfied, but there was a lot unsaid between the two of them. It was something I was going to have to keep my eye on.

The Doctor flicked a switch, turning a buzzing monitor off. It had been me letting him know in my own way to be careful, but he was already aware of that.

"So, you okay then?" He joined Amy at one of my new railings. "'Cause this place, sometimes it can make people feel a bit... ya know."

He knew it was more than my size that could be getting to her. I'd be peeking into her mind too.

"I'm fine, fine," Amy said. "It's just... there's a whole world in here, just like you said! It's all true... I thought, well, I started to think you were just a mad man with a box."

"Amy Pond, there's something you'd better understand about me because it's important and one day your life could depend on it: I am definitely a mad man with a box." He smiled.

Before that, she had been on the fence. I saw her final choice now and let him know he had finally succeeded again in winning her over. _"She's coming with us."_

"Ha ha! Yes!" The Doctor went to my parking brake. It was the only thing keeping me on the planet. Amy giggled and joined him. "Good bye, Leadworth, hello, everything!"

Together, they threw the brake and laughed as I dematerialized.

Off to adventure, everything untouched and revived and as exciting as a new dawn. The sun will rise now on a new me, a new Doctor, and a new companion, ready to see it all afresh.


End file.
